Lancaster Bangkok welcomed its first guest on 16 November 2017 and proudly celebrated its first anniversary.

Martin Hurley, General Manager, said “Since opening a year, now our beautiful hotel has taken its place as a favorite among guests. I would like to give thanks to all our guests, the hotel’s ownership and everyone who has been with us throughout our journey for their contributions and supports. It is with a sense of appreciation that we celebrated our First Anniversary with big anticipating, we’re now moving into second year of operation.

With this first year achievement, Lancaster Bangkok has strengthened its endeavor to deliver inspiring, high value and exceptional experiences to the hotel’s guests in an environment which is inherent in authentic Thai hospitality.

Lancaster Bangkok offers warm friendly atmosphere with modernity, international design and local inspiration. Rooms and Suites at the hotel provide ample space for guests to relax while enjoying the full range of thoughtful, state-of-the-art amenities on offer.

Lancaster Bangkok marks the second property for Landmark Lancaster Hotel Group. Their current hotel portfolio includes Landmark Bangkok and Lancaster Bangkok in Thailand and Landmark London, Royal Lancaster London, K West hotel & Spa and Basil Street Serviced Apartment in United Kingdom.

At i-Store Self-Storage, Thailand’s Premium Self-Storage Service, providing self-storages for rent. Currently, we have a branch at Silom, which is situated just 500m away from the BTS Chong Nonsi. Additionally, we will have our newest branch at Soi Sukhumvit 24 700m away from the BTS Prompong, ready to function last June 2018.

The aspect of i-Store that will guarantee that this service is not only the typical storage warehouse is the standardized services, new and clean spaces, having the option for users to choose their preferred size of rental, a plus for flexibility. The sizes begin from Luggage (0.5 square meters), Locker (1 square meters), XS (2.25 square meters), S (3 square meters), M (4.5 square meters), L (6 square meters), XL (9 square meters), and Premium (18 square meters). Furthermore, users can choose to store their goods for both short and long periods. For further convenience, there are elevators and transport facilities, such as trolleys, to assist users when moving items around. i-Store takes safety issues of every users’ valuable items into high consideration and that's why we have incorporated a security system that will run 24 hours, with CCTV cameras installed every floor, controlling the accessibility within the floors with the use of key cards, and smoke detectors. Nonetheless, we are able to respond to the lifestyles of customers nowadays who want to travel conveniently; as i-Store is located in the central of the town (CBD), Silom and Sukhumvit 24 branches located close to the BTS Skytrain station will certainly be a worthy service. Other than that i-Store plan to open new facility in 2-3 locations in 2019.

At i-Store self-storage, our client's best interest would always come first, and everything we do is guided by our values and professional standard. We are a member of Self Storage Asia Association (SSAA). We offer trusted self storage facility services to all individuals and corporate clients and ensure that we work hard to meet our client's expectations whenever they rent our self-storage facilities.

The newest branch : Sukhumvit 24 Sizable, Special

Last June, i-Store launched its newest branch at Sukhumvit 24. Within this branch, there will be up to 350 storage units, (starting from the size of 1 sq.m. to 18 sq.m.) ready to accommodate our customers. Nonetheless, we also have Premium unit for customers who want to store their motorcycles or cars. We have incorporated the technology of shutter door in the Sukhumvit 24 branch. Moreover, another special element that we have added is the rental service of wine cellars. It has been designed to be mindful how wine has to be kept the correct way. Not only it has the systematic control of humidity, it also controls the optimum temperature to store your wine. In addition to that, you will be able to access your wine at all times as we are open 24-hours a day. At i-Store, we pay great attention to all the delicate details to provide the best service for our customers.

A new service - pleasing condominium users

To provide the best Self-Storage Service in Thailand, i-Store has a new additional service that helps to meet the needs of condominium users. With a depository door-to-door service of i-Store Go, with a click of a hand of reservation through our website www.i-storego.com , our staff will be at your service in no time right at your door. The staff will be present with a blue box and when you are done packing your items into the box, our staff will then safely transport the box to our storage area, also secured by having a 24-Hour security system. Thus, whenever our customers want the box back, they can always contact us to receive the box. Our staff will then return the box to our customer within the date and time that has been agreed and confirmed with our customer.

Easy, Clean, Safe : The Service of i-Store

Located in the heart of the city and a complete service of i-Store, we are confident that we are the leaders of providing the premium self-storage service of Thailand. We have various solutions that are able to respond to whom are facing with the problems of wanting to have additional free space in their house,condominium,office, or whether if customers want the convenience in storing items away without having to waste time traveling great distances. If perhaps, today you are looking for a private storage area, please do not hesitate to consult with one of our i-Store Self-Storage staff members.

AIR RADIATORS WIN BEST PRESENTATION AT GEELONG MANUFACTURING COUNCIL’S EXCELLENCE PROGRAM

Air Radiators representatives gave a winning presentation at the Geelong Manufacturing Council’s (GMC) Leadership for Manufacturing Excellence Program on reducing lead times within Air Radiators Lara at the Geelong Conference Centre today.

The project team consisted of Marcus McEwen, Marcus McVilly and Prasath Poornasundaram who were selected by management to participate in the Leadership for Manufacturing Excellence Program run by the GMC.

The program involved lessons on leadership, communication, innovation, problem solving and presenting skills as well as focusing on the foundations of Lean principles with the aim of improving the Air Radiators manufacturing environment.

The graduation of the course included a final presentation to the members of the GMC and all participating members which was judged based on the criteria surrounding the key principles of the program.

Through the program and undertaking the specific Air Radiators project, the team managed to reduce lead times within the business by 32%, achieving a $195,000 saving per year as well as the potential to improve annual sales capacity.

Rugby School Thailand (RST) opened in Chonburi in September 2017 to fill a gap in the market by offering a genuine UK independent school education, based on the model of Rugby School in the UK, one of the original British public schools. From the outset, RST aimed to be a ‘proper’, academically-selective school. Offering a full academic curriculum, based on the English National Curriculum, culminating in the gold-standard IGCSE and A-level qualifications, RST also offers a full co-curriculum to ensure the all-round development of each student - mind, body and spirit. As they put it: the whole person; the whole point.

A co-educational, age 2-18, day and boarding school, RST offers an extended school day ensuring that every pupil can enjoy to the full its fabulous facilities set in its stunning 90-acre greenfield site 12 miles outside Pattaya. Already making waves in the local day market, RST is also attracting weekly boarders from Bangkok keen to substitute fresh air for pollution; games for gridlock.

Parents are buying into the School’s ethos in droves: opening with 110 pupils in September 2017, RST has 420 on its roll today - under half of whom are local - with waiting lists in certain year groups. Creativity and innovation are in the school’s DNA: from music, art, dance and drama to top-notch swimming coaching. Sailing, rowing and kayaking compliment the major teams sports.

Just-opened new buildings include two boarding houses, a sixth-form centre and a second classroom block including specialist rooms for science, computer science, design and technology, art and design, music, dance and a theatre - catering for all the STEAM (science, technology, engineering, arts and maths) subjects. Combined with swimming pools, a stunning dining room and a statement entrance, the campus of buildings is used a by combination of expatriate and local teaching staff all of whom are fully involved in the co-curricular programme and the students’ pastoral care.

RST makes a significant contribution to the Chonburi economy: with a professional staff complement of 120 the school is a major local employer with a small army of administrative, domestic and grounds staff and a payroll of several million Baht each month. The capital development costs of the entire project are estimated at between THB2-3 billion (GBP50-70m) with the build alone making a major direct contribution to the development of the Eastern Economic Corridor. RST will also help facilitate its growth through the ultimate provision of 1,200 international school places ensuring that when major multinationals want to set up shop in the EEC, their ability to do so won’t be constrained by the absence of school places for their employees’ children - and their children certainly won’t be constrained by the confines of a typical international school.

Rugby School Thailand is already a name to conjure with. Expect to hear a lot more from it.

Prayoon Jenlapwattanakul, Managing Director of Ban Pulakorn (2550) Co., Ltd., said BHMA would be the ideal partner to maximize the resort’s performance and visitor experience.

“Away has established itself as one of Thailand’s premier boutique hotel brands, enjoying a loyal following from guests wishing to get away from it all without forgoing the finer things in life,’’ he said.

The NIST education has gradually shifted over the past several years as our community has become increasingly aware of the importance of engaging with other communities to work toward shared solutions for local and global issues, and the need for more sustainable practices. More than ever, it’s critical that organizations work not solely for their own betterment, but also for the needs of future generations.

In many cases this drive to become a more conscientious school does not come from leadership or teachers, but from our students themselves. Whether through plastic reduction or social entrepreneurship, they identify ways to contribute individually and collectively to these efforts. One such student was recently recognized in The Nation and other publications for the launch of his own business.

Polpong (Much) P. in Year 12 created Everleaves with the intention of both supporting pineapple farmers in Prachuap Khiri Khan, a province in southern Thailand. His method for transforming pineapple leaves into paper provides an alternative for farmers in selling a byproduct that otherwise has limited uses: “Not only does this reduce the pollution that is emitted from the production of alternative materials, but it adds economic value to these pineapple leaves which would have been otherwise incinerated and wasted.”

Through the creative use of these leaves, Much has enabled farmers to dramatically increase their income while also filling a niche market demand. More importantly, he has implemented a model that has produced similar results at NIST: one that relies on collaboration between differing communities through the perspective of shared learning. By approaching issues from the perspective of a learner, actively seeking to understand the needs of others and working with them to develop solutions, NIST students have continued to make a positive impact throughout Thailand and the greater region.

Congratulations, Much, and we look forward to seeing your products spread even further!

Talking to plants can get you funny looks but data science company Autogrow is developing artificial intelligence so the world's indoor commercial growers can do the next best thing – talk to an avatar about the health and progress of their crops.

Not content with lifting export destinations for its high-tech automated growing systems from 14 to 45 countries in the past three years, the Auckland-based agtech company is setting up shop in America's fresh produce-growing heart, California.

It is also moving into artificial intelligence (AI) to help feed growing populations and improve the profitability of under-pressure indoor growers and farmers.

Chief executive, director and shareholder Darryn Keiller will by Christmas shift house to California's Bay Area, joining four Autogrow staff already working in the West Coast state.

The move will help the company have its finger on the pulse of America's US$20 billion ($30.7b) vegetable production market and the US$6-8b berry sector.

Autogrow estimates there are about 20,000 forms of indoor farming in the US, from protected cropping to greenhouse operations that can span up to 30 hectares and urban farms, with California historically producing fresh produce all year round for other states that can have winter climate for up to eight months of the year. Much of the US berry crop is grown under canopies.

The company will also tap the booming medicinal cannabis growing market, which Keiller likens to a gold rush.

"It's a very dynamic market at the moment with a lot of investment being made into expansion and upgrading of (indoor) farms," says Keiller, who is driving a US$10 million capital raise for Autogrow's next growth phase.

It's the pre-profit firm's first significant capital raising and Keiller's looking for US investors, though he wouldn't say no to Asian and New Zealand money.

Autogrow is pioneering new technologies, but is actually 25 years old and was founded by the late Auckland hobby grower, inventor and electronics lecturer Jeff Broad.

It reinvented itself under Keiller's guidance in 2015.

After subsequent capital raising, Autogrow is today 62 per cent owned by a Paihia-based private investor, with Jeff Broad's sons Donovan and Kevin each holding stakes of around 13 per cent.

Literally founded in a garage, Autogrow wasn't particularly profitable when Keiller, a branding and marketing high-flyer, came on board as a consultant.

That was only because the company hadn't commercialised its indoor farming technology, he says.

But Broad had built an export market, and had entered the US market in the early 2000s through a distributor.

A strength of Broad's company was hydroponic production; another was managing plant environments.

Broad's ambition was to produce healthy and nutritious crops, of good colour and size. That vision hasn't changed, says Keiller.

But Autogrow also wants to make growers and indoor farmers - working under relentless and costly environmental pressure - profitable.

"Autogrow leapt out of the box around 2011 when it developed Multigrow, which was launched in 2012 and is still sold today. Jeff was quite ill at the time and never got to see how important a tech development it was," he says.

Multigrow is a flexible system that can be configured to perform climate, control, fertigation, dosing, batching and irrigation.

"Through that system they were able to gather lots of data – I got there in mid-2014 and believed this wealth of data from farms was highly valuable, which has proved [true]."

"Agtech was an emerging field, I saw we could reinvent all that data into a high-tech company and take advantage of all the new technology that existed for AI and data science and analytics and machine vision. All the things I was familiar with," recalls Keiller.

"I couldn't believe the industry wasn't using these things. The whole indoor farming industry was in a bubble. I saw the opportunity to advance the technology and disrupt the industry with a fusion between plant biological science and data science and advanced technology - the three things that Autogrow now utilises."

These days Autogrow routinely collects about 40 trillion data points from its operations, Keiller says.

He said the data measures everything from temperature and humidity to the alkaline or acidity of water supply, weather factors, wind direction, and solar radiation levels.

"We track those data points and use them to inform the technology about what it needs to do to feed plants, water, control the temperature etc. We can predict what's going to happen with the fruit – whether it's healthy or not, when it's ready for harvest."

Traditional technologies don't have the "computational firepower" to process all this data, says Keiller.

"You would need a super-computer on every farm."

Autogrow is one of only six companies in the world using this type of tech in the controlled environment area, says Keiller.

But it would have needed to find US$100 million to distribute its technology without an established tech platform partner.

"The idea is you pull all that data up into the Cloud then it runs through Autogrow's data processing engine, our proprietary IP. We develop that tool that sits on Amazon and it allows us to deploy it to any farm anywhere in the world as long as they have Internet connectivity.

"We can take their data, process it, and return it as useful information to say what is happening with their crop and their farm production. That's very powerful."

Growers buy the hardware and subscribe to Autogrow's technologies suite, which is "open platform" meaning it is designed to integrate with other operating systems.

The next frontier for Autogrow is AI and as usual, it's not hanging about.

It aims to be the first agtech company in the world to commercialise voice technology that allows growers to ask an avatar about the state of a crop.

Using Amazon's voice technology, Alexa, growers will be able to talk to their systems and act on what the avatar reports.

And it won't be too long, reckons Keiller, before Autogrow's AI will be able to self-correct the problems and risks it identifies.

After all, if you're a Valentine's Day rose grower whose paycheck hangs on producing those blooms in perfect condition, or a berry grower dependent on the sugar levels of your fruit to stay in business, the least of your worries is funny looks.

Minor International Public Company Limited (“MINT”) is pleased to announce that it has successfully completed its tender offer for shares in NH Hotel Group at a price of EUR 6.30 per share. A total of 187,289,383 shares of NH Hotel Group, representing 47.8% of its outstanding shares, were tendered in the tender offer. Together with MINT’s pre-offer shareholding, MINT has secured a 94.1% shareholding stake in NH Hotel Group, at a total investment amount of EUR 2,327 million.

The acquisition of NH Hotel Group is transformative for MINT, giving it a platform of 549 hotels across Asia, Australia, the Middle East, Africa, Europe, Latin America and the US. With the tender offer completed, MINT will immediately turn its focus to working closely with NH Hotel Group to complete integration-related tasks and to unlock value-accretive and mutually complementary benefits across both businesses, with the aim of maximizing shareholder value in both companies on a foundation of financial discipline and strong corporate governance. In addition, over the next few quarters and with the benefit of accounting consolidation of NH Hotel Group’s strong earnings, MINT will actively manage its funding structure, without new issuance of capital.

“We are extremely pleased with the outcome of our tender offer,” commented William E. Heinecke, Founder and Chairman of MINT. “The acquisition of NH Hotel Group has transformed MINT into a truly global hospitality company, with a strong focus on exceeding the expectations of today’s customers. The combined MINT-NH Hotel Group platform offers an extended product range across our combined brand portfolio with global geographical coverage. This, combined with the opportunities to leverage the respective strengths of MINT and NH Hotel Group to our mutual benefit, make it an extremely exciting time for our companies, our shareholders and our valued guests.”

Dillip Rajakarier, CEO of Minor Hotels added, “The acquisition of NH Hotel Group is a true game-changer for both MINT and NH Hotel Group. We have complete confidence in the NH Hotel Group’s business fundamentals and anticipate strong earnings results in 2018 and beyond, as management announced earlier this year. NH Hotel Group has a clear, proven track record of delivering strong and consistent EBITDA growth, underpinned by a strategic, high-value hotel real estate portfolio and deep relationships with asset owners and customers throughout Europe and Latin America. I am personally very excited to welcome the highly talented management team of NH Hotel Group and to work closely with them. Together, I am confident that we will succeed in bringing together our two great companies to create an even more exciting proposition for all stakeholders.”

In the Landmark Lancaster Group, We proudly presented to you our new brand of Viva Jiva Fit. A lively and luxury service for your soul and body at the same time.Our team of health professionals are dedicated to educating our members on the benefits of a healthy lifestyle. We work to help maximise the body’s full potential to live, love, and growWe skilfully combine a variety of training to personalise your care based on our experience to re-energise the whole person – body and mind.

We offer a completely unique and luxurious experience. With each signature function specially designed, you will not believe the experience until you see and try it. Opened by 180° of gorgeous view, all-day natural light, Viva Jiva Fit brightens your day and lifts your mood. Our friendly and knowledgeable Hospitality staff will assist however and whenever needed. The 500 sqm gymnasium features state of the art equipment form Precor and Cybex and an expansive activity space perfect for personal training. The cardio equipment features online touch screens, enabling you to binge on Netflix whilst training for your next marathon. The fitness studio is perfect for Pilates, alongside yoga and TRX classes.

After a thorough workout, it’s time to hit the lockers. The male and female lockers both offer herbal steam rooms, Himalayan salt saunas and ice fountains to invigorate your system through contrast therapy. Finish your Viva Jiva Fit experience with a fresh smoothie at High Bar, the place to reward your exertions.

At Viva Jiva Fit we combine the very latest in fitness technology with 5 star services to lift our clients from a sedentary lifestyle.

Lancaster Bangkok is a five star hotel located at 1777 New Petchaburi road, part of the Landmark Lancaster Hotel company, with properties in both Bangkok and London.

Wins both “Excellent Application Award” and “Market Development Award” at 2018 SDS

Dr. Paul Bisso showcased YPB’s revolutionary Motif Micro technology for the first time in China

SDS is China’s peak summit for document and anti-counterfeit security

SDS attracts Government and Industry representatives from 30 countries

YPB is pleased to announce that at the 13th Security Document Summit (SDS) held in Beijing October 17th-18th, it received both the “Excellent Application Award” and the “Market Development Award” as part of SDS’s ‘Blue Shield Awards’ program. Each year SDS assesses and grants 5 Industry Awards. YPB has won awards every year since 2014 and has variously been awarded Excellent Application, Excellent Invention, Excellent Solution and, in 2018 for the first time, the “Market Development Award”.

The SDS is an annual event organised by China International Science and Technology Promotion Association and co-organised by the First Research Institute of China’s Ministry of Public Security (MPS). SDS is China’s largest and most authoritative professional Industry organisation and is China’s key resource aggregation platform that has previously launched such successful programs as China’s new electronic passports, Chinese motor vehicle driver’s license, China’s social security card, a variety of tax bills, and China’s bank cards. This year YPB’s Dr. Paul Bisso presented Motif Micro’s breakthrough smartphone readability of a forensic anti-counterfeit mark to China for the first time.

The grant of the Excellent Application Award 2018 acknowledged the significant product development made by YPB in Food Traceability. YPB’s technology, able to withstand high cooking temperatures while completely stable and functional, has been used to protect the famous, seasonal and rare Chinese Crab “Yang Cheng Lake Da Zha Xie” from counterfeit and substitution, right to the consumer’s plate.

The grant of the Market Development Award acknowledged the innovative deployment of YPB’s anti-counterfeit solutions by a prominent consumer brand client of Australia’s leading squeeze tube manufacturer Impact International and signalled the increased importance with which official circles in China view protecting the rapidly growing volume of exports from Australia to China from fakes. China’s new Cross-Border E-Commerce laws are in part intended to ensure Chinese consumers buying directly from offshore are protected from counterfeit and receive the authentic product they intended to purchase.

Impact International’s Managing Director, Mr. Aleks Lajovic commented “Congratulations to our partner YPB on winning these prestigious awards. In 2019, we are on track to sell more than 16 million tubes to our customers who are protected by YPB. Winning such an award will further enable us to highlight the benefits to our customers of protecting their products with award winning YPB technology.”

The Blue Shield Award program follows guidelines of openness and competition. The awards committee conducts several months of evaluation and applicants need at least 2 independent nominations prior to a triple review process that finally determines the winners.

John Houston, YPB’s CEO and Chairman said: “It is our honour to be associated with China’s SDS and to have our existing technologies and their commercial relevance recognised by the evaluating committee, but showcasing our breakthrough Motif Micro technology for smartphone readability at this year’s SDS was an even greater honour. We intend to convert the increased prominence afforded by these awards into commercial success in China and internationally.”